Conflicts of Mouth and Heart
by Snowflakes-Over-the-Water
Summary: Lovina is in love with Antonio, but she'll never tell him. Especially since it's obvious that he'll never return her feelings...and what of the loud American who's been hanging around her lately? SpainxFem!S.ItalyxAmerica love triangle
1. Prologue

**AN: **HELLO THERE! *waves* I have returned with another Hetalia fic! And this time, it's going to be a multi-chapter story! (That fact kind of scares me...looking at my track record...I never finish chapter stories . BUT I WILL THIS TIME! I have a plan laid out and everything n.n)

This was actually a request that I got from _one-winged-icarus_(Aha, I'm sorry that I'm uploading this so late. I can't even remember how long ago it was that you gave me the request. Hopefully you'll like it enough to make up for my lateness .) after my other Hetalia oneshot. The request itself was kind of long, so just know that this is going to be a mainly SpainxFem!South Italy fic with onesided AmericaxFem!South Italy. There will of course be other pairings mentioned, but they won't really have large roles. Also, a happy Spamano ending is required :D

So, without further ado, I present to you: THE PROLOGUE OF "CONFLICTS OF MOUTH AND HEART!" (I'm kind of iffy on the title. I may change it, and if that happens I'll tell everyone about it in an AN~)

I hope everyone enjoys~

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hetalia! If I did, well... lets just say it's probably better that I _dont_ own it.

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><p>~*L*O*V*I*N*A*~<p>

She was on her back, long tresses of wavy, auburn hair fanned out around her head. She had stretched her arms out on both sides, her hands barely visible in a sea of lush green. There was a breeze. It played with her hair, brushing flyaway pieces against her cheek, and ruffled the skirt of her summer dress. _When was the last time she had worn a dress?_

Far above her, the sun shone brightly. The fiery ball of light sent rays of warmth down to caress her already tan skin. The light danced across her hair and face, sometimes disappearing if a cloud, with texture akin to that of a sheep in need of shearing, passed overhead. The sky was blue, and deep, stretching as far as she could see in all directions. _Oh how she missed the feeling of looking up and seeing something other then dull gray-clouded skies._

She twisted now so that she was on her stomach, chin resting comfortably in her palms as her elbows dug into soft soil. Directly in front of her the field stretched on, changing from grass and wildflowers to a farmer's vineyard. She longed to leap up and run, dart around in the shadows of the grapevines like she used to as a child.

She had almost decided to give in to the urge, to laugh and play as if she were no more than a little girl, when a voice sounded from her right.

"Ve~ Lovina," the voice called. "_Sorella_, it's time to come in to eat~ _Nonno_ and I made pasta!"

Lovina, for that was her name, glanced over toward the sound of her sister, Felicia's, voice. The field of grass continued on for a ways, before seeming to simply drop off into nothing, giving way to an expanse of open air.

Lovina knew that this apparent drop-off actually gave way to the gentle sloping of a hill, at the bottom of which was her _nonno's_ villa.

She stood, dusting the dirt from her elbows and knees as she did so. Instead of immediately moving in the direction of the villa and, evidently, food, she paused, letting her hair and dress flutter in the wind. She tilted her head and stared up into the sky, careful not to look directly into the sun lest it burn her eyes. Unconsciously, as she dug her bare feet into the smooth Italian soil and let the heat of the sun wash over her, she smiled. _She had missed this_.

The serenity of the moment was abolished as the smell of her sister's fresh-cooked pasta reached her nose, and her stomach grumbled loudly in protest. 'What are you doing,' it seemed to ask her. 'Get down there. Feed me.'

She was off then, the pull of hunger and the prospect of fresh-cooked noodles covered with tomato sauce too much to resist any longer.

She had just crested the hill, the roof of the villa coming into view, when she heard it. A small buzzing in her ear. She stopped abruptly, eyes widening in slight alarm as she swatted at the air around her head. There was nothing there, yet the buzzing came again.

She willed her body to calm, trying to tune in to the buzzing. When she listened closely, it appeared as if it wasn't really buzzing at all, but someone speaking words. The odd thing was, it appeared as if this new voice existed only in her head.

Her eyebrows furrowed and she strained, trying to make out what the voice was saying. Then she heard it. Her eyes widened. Her heart raced and panic startle to settle within her. She wasn't, she wasn't crazy. There was no voice in her head. And it hadn't just said her _name_.

Evidently, her sudden denial of its existence only made the little voice more determined. She could heart it clearly now.

"Lovi," it said. "Lovina. Lovi~"

_What the hell is a Lovi? _she thought, although she was certain she had heard the term. If she focused, the voice was vaguely familiar, and each time it said her name, something in her heart stirred.

The voice was male. There was an accent, one that, if she had to place it, she would have said was... Spanish? She tried to place the voice, certain now that she knew it. The only image her mind could conjure was a brilliant smile, directed at her as if she were the only thing that existed in the world. It made her face flush and she cursed the ability of her skin to turn red so easily.

_He_ was getting more persistent now.

"Lovina. Wake up, _querida._"

_Wake up?_ What did he mean wake u-

Suddenly her eyes were opening. _When had she closed them?_

Her surroundings were blurry and all she could see were hazy, multicoloured shapes. She blinked. As if a fog had started to clear, the shapes started to take on individual forms. Determined and confused, she blinked again. And again. And again.

She flinched backward, surprised by the form that appeared then, in front of her. Messy brown hair framed the face, settling haphazardly across a tanned forehead, darker than her own. She moved her gaze all the way down and found a mouth wide in smile, showing off perfectly white teeth.

She gulped slightly as she moved her gaze back up, locking hazel orbs with a pair of dazzling, olive eyes. Heat pooled in her cheeks as she found a name for the voice she had been trying so hard to place. In front of her, Antonio Carriedo continued to grin.

~*A*N*T*O*N*I*O*~

She was adorable, really she was. Sitting there, only half awake, a dazed expression on her face. It was moments like this that he truly loved, when he had somehow managed to catch her off guard and her constant emotional barrier was let down for a few precious seconds.

She looked sort of vulnerable, he thought. Antonio was so accustomed to the tough front she held (Oh yes, he knew it was just a front. Contrary to popular belief, even he wasn't dense enough not to realise _that_); the biting, lashing comments that she let fall from her perfect, little mouth because that was the only defense she had. The way her lips always seemed to curve down in a scowl, as if she were afraid to smile.

She had been smiling a moment ago, obviously caught up in a good day dream. He had hated waking her; she had looked so peaceful. It was almost worth it, though, for now she was gazing up at him with surprisingly docile hazel eyes, a light pink flush dusting her cheeks.

The sight of her made his grin widen.

"_Hola_, Lovi~ Did you have a nice nap _cariño_?"

The peaceful atmosphere was broken by his words, akin to the way the glass-like surface of a tranquil pond can be broken by a tiny pebble dropped in.

Her eyebrows narrowed, eyes blazing as if the mere sound of his voice was an annoyance like no other. The expression she directed at him now was a heated glare, but he was so accustomed to it that it had no affect whatsoever.

"Dammit bastard! What'd you go and wake me up for? I was having a good dream!"

"I could tell, Lovi~ You were smiling as you slept, even drooled a little bit! Hey, did you know how cute you look when you smile? You should do it more often instead of scowling at me all the time~"

At his words, her scowl only deepened. She opened her mouth and started swearing and yelling at him some more, obviously attempting to convey just how angry she was with him. The affect was completely reversed by the deepening of the flush on her cheeks and the hesitancy in her eyes, like she wasn't used to being complimented.

It almost made him frown, knowing that his lovely Lovi didn't get complimented as much as she should. He was trying to fix that, obviously, but she was still so insecure...

He willed the darkening thoughts away. _What would Lovina say if she saw him frowning? _Probably something along the lines of, "The hell, tomato bastard? What's with that face; are you trying to think again?" Whatever it was, it would be said in a harsh, Lovi-like way that would in actuality be synonymous with something more concerned, wondering what had made the Spaniards usual grin flip upside down.

Oh, his _querida_ was so cute~ Getting all worried about him, and then trying to hide it. She should know that he could read all the hidden messages behind her almost never honest words and actions. They _had_ known each other for quite a few years now. He could still remember that first meeting, back when they were just freshmen, entering the Academy for the first time. The moment he'd seen her, he'd-

Ah, but that was a different story. Right now, he was far too focused on the bright colour in Lovina's cheeks. Vibrant red. Just like a tomato.

He felt that it would be a great idea to inform her of this. So he did!

Her cheeks flared more, though this time he could tell it was just from anger, not embarrassment.

"What the fuck? Do you ever even listen to me, dammit? I told you, stop comparing me to your stupid tomatoes!"

He laughed, though this response only served to infuriate her further. She let out a string of profanity, but it simply washed over him. He was far too interested in watching the angry fire dance in her eyes, the rapid movement of her mouth as she swore in English, Italian, Spanish and a whole slew of other languages, and the tense clenching of her fists as she fought the urge to bludgeon his face.

The smile that his lips had been curved into never faded. Yes, she was angry with him. _When was she not?_ But that didn't matter, because Lovi was Lovi, and he liked her just the way she was.

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><p><strong>End AN:<strong> Whoa, I can't believe I'm finally posting this! This prologue has seriously been sitting in my documents folder for like a month and a half now :D

Speaking of the prologue, I should probably tell you guys that this chapter doesn't really have _anything_ to do with the plot of my actual story. Basically, I wrote it and I liked it, so I decided to keep it. It's connections to the rest of the story are extremely insignificant. *shrug* Oh well, I hope you enjoyed it at least.

The actual story will start next chapter. Honestly, though, I have no idea when that will be uploaded. I'm trying to stay ahead by always making sure that I have the next chapter written before I post, but with this, I just didn't want to keep _one-winged-icarus_ waiting any longer! The next chapter is almost finished, but it won't be posted until I finish chapter 2...Ah ha, you'll see an update eventually xD

Again, I hope you liked the prologue~ Reviews are _extremely_ appreciated, especially constructive criticism. I'm always looking to make my writing better!

**Translations:** Most of these should be pretty obvious. I only use tiny one to two word phrases because I don't trust GoogleTranslate with anything longer. If any of these are wrong, I'm sorry. Blame GoogleTranslate.

_Sorella_ - Italian, Sister

_Nonno_ - Italian, Grandpa/Grandfather

_Querida_ - Spanish, dear

_Hola_ - Spanish, hello

_C__ariño - _Spanish, love (as in dear, sweetie, honey, etc.)


	2. Chapter One

**AN:** *peaks out from behind curtain with nervous smile* Aha, hello there! I'm back with the next chapter after well, almost 2 months. Heh heh...I have a whole bunch of excuses and they're all 100% true (This includes excuse number 1: I am LAAAAZY) but I won't bore you with that because I'm sure Chapter One is MUCH more exciting than anything I have to say :D

BUT FIRST! I wanted to thank all the lovely people who favourited this story and put it on alert. That makes me really happy, and I'm sorry it took so long for this next chapter to be put up. Hopefully you won't be disappointed~ Also, thanks to the two people who reviewed, _one-winged-icarus_ and _yumi-2121331_. Cookies for you! FINALLY, one ginormous thank you and a hug for _KabbyDare_ who edited this chapter and the prologue for me!~~

And without further rambling from me, CHAPTER ONE! Where the plot actually starts! Yaaay~ ... After a disclaimer of course~

**Disclaimer:** Hetalia = Something I do not own :D

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><p>~*L*O*V*I*N*A*~<p>

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

The butt of the pencil in her hand hit the desk like this, one tap after another. She was in perfect sync with the clock up on the wall as it counted the seconds; its thin red line moving around the clock face much too slowly for her liking. Her gaze switched over to the minute hand. It had been there, in that same spot, for what felt like _hours_. If only it would move half a millimeter to the right, then she would finally be free!

Tired of staring at the taunting, white face, she looked down at her desk. It was covered in scratches that she figured had been words once, but over the years had faded to illegible scribbles. She traced one of the lines. It seemed like it had been a heart with a pair of initials in it, but she couldn't be sure. She traced the could-be-heart again, allowing the soft pad of her fingers to feel the tiny, carved grooves in once-pristine wood.

She wondered about the person who had made the heart, who had spent diligent minutes digging into the wood. What were the circumstances surrounding this heart, so carefully made? Did it represent a love not returned, unrequited? Or was it to symbolize a love that had been realised between two people, the scrawling of a girl who had found her prince charming, fallen in love, had that love returned, and carved the heart out of overwhelming happiness?

Her hand unconsciously clenched at the thought of this second scenario, and she winced as the tip of her pencil dug into her palm. She knew that, were she to carve a heart into this desk right now, the initials inside it would represent her name and the name of a certain Spaniard with sparkling green eyes. The heart would also represent the first scenario, a one-sided love that in her case had never even been spoken aloud.

She scoffed lightly to herself. She had figured out how she felt long ago, and although she fought it at first, eventually she had come to terms with those feelings. That was good enough; she didn't need to go shouting it for the world to hear. Even if she did, he would not return those feelings the way she wanted him to.

Make no mistake, she _knew_ he loved her. He told her often: "I love you, Lovi~"

The problem was, his love for her was not unique, was no different than his love for everyone else he cared for. He was the kind of person who threw _those words_ around like they were nothing. She had realised long ago that, while indeed he did care deeply for her, loving her in his own way, Antonio Carriedo was not _in love_ with her.

She hadn't realised she was digging her pencil into the desk, violently slashing an "x" across the faded heart, until a hand reached over and grabbed her wrist.

"You shouldn't vandalize school property like that, Lovina."

Her gaze shot up and she came face to face with the stern expression of her sister's boyfriend, Ludwig. Her own expression morphed automatically into a scowl and she ripped her hand out of Ludwig's grip, dropping her pencil in the process.

"Keep your stupid wurst-covered hands off me, potato bastard!"

He remained stoic, seemingly unaffected by the heated glare she was shooting in his direction. After a few seconds of slightly awkward silence, Ludwig turned back to the notes he had been taking, evidently deeming them more important than the argument that would without a doubt ensue were he to remain in contact with Lovina.

She huffed lightly, biting her tongue to stop the onslaught of curses waiting to be unleashed. Remembering that she had dropped her pencil, she leaned down to the side, reaching around blindly under her seat for the missing writing utensil. Her hand closed around it, and she grinned triumphantly.

It was right then—as she sat upright in her seat once more—that the minute hand on the clock above the door moved onto the twelve. When this shift occurred the school's bell began tolling, a deep, almost-mournful noise.

It rang once, twice, all the way up to eleven. Over the course of those few seconds between the first and last toll, Lovina stood from her seat, hefted her bag onto her shoulder, and was walking briskly down the rows of desks. She spared Ludwig no last glance as she departed, choosing instead to focus on the only exit out of the room. Her feet crossed through the gateway between classroom and crowded hallway, and she was suddenly swept up in a wave of people, all congregating toward their favorite period of the day: lunch.

~*A*N*T*O*N*I*O*~

Lovina was fuming, her body wriggling around, twisting and turning like a trapped animal. Her cheeks flushed a bright, angry red, giving the appearance that the skin had just been slapped, and higher on her face, her eyes flashed in dangerous, un-contained fury. _She's beautiful_, he couldn't help but think. _In the same kind of way that fire can be beautiful._ He could only stare in awe as she continued to fight him, trying to free herself from a grip he refused to relinquish.

"God damn it! You stupid, _stupid_, tomato bastard; let me go! I have to go kick that albino bastard's _ass_!"

He was dragged unceremoniously from his thoughts as she kicked back against his legs. Hard.

She was flailing her arms now, waving them around wildly in an effort to loosen his grip while a stream of obscenities fell through her lips. He admired her valiant struggles, but knew she was stuck; held firmly in place by his hands around her waist.

"Come on Lovi, Gil didn't mean it! He was just joking; weren't you Gilbert?"

Antonio glanced over at the self-proclaimed Prussian. Gilbert stood a little ways in front of them, hands on his hips, mouth upturned in a smug smile. Antonio shot him an imploring look, asking him with his eyes to "_Please_. Tell her it was a joke!" Gilbert's smile only widened.

"Kesesese. Sorry, Toni, I was only stating what I assumed to be true. Not my fault it bothered your pissy little Italian."

Lovina growled and tried to lunge at Gilbert, only just barely failing to break through the barrier created by Antonio's arms. The albino jumped back, moving himself a safer distance away from the volatile Italian in Antonio's grip. Fear flashed through blood-red eyes; Gilbert's lack of faith in Antonio's ability to restrain Lovina was obvious.

The thought made Antonio frown ever so slightly, hurt by the fact that his friend didn't trust him. He readjusted his grip, locking his arms more snugly around Lovina's middle. It was impossible not to notice just how nicely she fit against him.

That thought led to another and soon enough, although Lovina continued to kick and swear at him, he had allowed his mind to wander.

On a normal day, even just _thinking_ about holding his Lovi like this would be enough to make his heart beat faster. Now—despite the way in which she was so desperately trying to free herself from his grasp—he was thoroughly enjoying being able to hold her in his arms.

_If the situation were different_, he thought to himself, _it would be even better_.

He would grin, and laugh, and cuddle her; watch her cheeks turn that adorable shade of red that reminded him of the tomatoes they both loved. She would swear, and kick at him—just like she was now—but it would be okay because he would be able to see the truth in her eyes: she enjoyed him hugging and cuddling her just as much as he did. He didn't understand why she couldn't just admit it.

Lovina always blamed it on his height, complaining about how tall he was. It wasn't that he was tall; she was just so much shorter than him. While she despised that fact, he loved it. The difference in their height was perfect for times like now, when he had her pressed tightly up against him, so close he could even feel the _thump thump thump_ of her heartbeat —But you know, now probably wasn't _really_ the best time to be thinking about things like that. He had more important things to focus on—like calming Lovina down, for example!

A relatively simple plan immediately jumped to mind, and he grinned.

He bent his head down slightly, situating his mouth close to Lovina's ear so that she would be able to hear the quieter tone of his voice.

"It's alright, mi amor," he whispered. "Por favor, querida, calm down."

He continued with a steady flow of what he hoped were soothing words, a mix of English paired with his native language of Spanish. He'd used this kind of approach before, whenever he'd been tasked with calming down a hysterical Lovi who would cling to him until the latest terrifying thunderstorm faded away. This was the best way, Antonio knew, to calm down his Lovi when she was angry, frightened, or just upset.

Today though, his usual tactic didn't seem to be working. With every Spanish word Lovi sent a particularly hard kick back against his shins. He tried not to wince and mentally apologized to his poor, abused legs; there were going to be some nasty bruises there later. _Lo siento_ _my friends._

He wasn't _too_ concerned about the pain shooting through his legs, though; it wasn't that important. Neither was Gilbert's worry over whether or not Antonio would be able to hold Lovina back; the Spaniard was much stronger than one might think. Or at least, he was stronger than the Italian in his arms, and that was what mattered.

What Gilbert should _really_ be worried about was the knife being brandished like a dagger in Lovina's left hand. The knife had come close to nicking Antonio as Lovina flailed her arms, but he knew it was really meant for his friend a few feet away. She had already managed to land one good hit on the albino, having raced forward to punch him in the face right after he'd spoken the one comment that had started all of this.

Antonio couldn't even remember the exact sentence Gilbert had spoken.

That lunchtime had started off strangely peaceful. But then Ludwig and Felicia had showed up late, the blonde German looking particularly flustered with his cheeks a deep crimson. Gilbert had picked up on this immediately, and, of course, couldn't pass up the chance to tease his younger brother. He'd said something then, something about Ludwig, Felicia, and a janitor's closet, Antonio thought.

The trigger had been when Gilbert referred to Felicia as Ludwig's bitch, but luckily, Antonio had been able to grab Lovina before she could do anything more than punch Gilbert once in the face. The evidence of her action had been left, however, in the immense swelling around Gilbert's right eye. From the way she fought against him now, the Italian was very obviously still out for the albino's blood.

That was why he was here. Antonio's job was to keep her from harming Gilbert any more. He knew he wasn't just doing it for his friend's sake, however; he was doing it for his cute Lovi too. There was no doubt that she would get in trouble for the damage she had already done to Gilbert's eye, but Antonio knew that if she were to attempt to injure the albino with a _knife_, the consequences would be much more severe. He didn't want his Lovi to be suspended!

"Fucking albino! I'll gauge your eyes out with this god damn knife! Actually no, someone give me a spoon! That'll be even more painful for you, you figlio di puttana! I'll teach you to call my sister anyone's bitch!"

He sighed lightly. He understood that Lovina was very protective of her sister—almost as protective as he was with her!—and that she had an intense hatred for "those damned Kraut bastards," but wasn't she taking this too far? She had a knife for God's sake! Someone could get seriously injured and then Lovi wouldn't be allowed to come to school for a while and he wouldn't get to see her. That would be unbearable; he just couldn't let it happen! But it would be okay; all he had to do was get his Lovi away from Gilbert before she could hurt him anymore.

Easy as eating a tomato, right?

~*L*O*V*I*N*A*~

Lovina loved many things about Antonio. Anyone observing from outside would claim the exact opposite, and Lovina would vehemently agree with them. In the privacy of her own mind, however, she was free to admit the truth.

The list was long, going on and on to take up quite a bit of the storage capability of her brain.

She loved the way he laughed at the things she said, and how he called her cute even though she swore at him and hit him (only in an effort to hide the way she really felt, of course.) She loved his adoration of tomatoes and the way he compared her to such magnificent fruit. She loved it when he spoke Spanish, even more so when he sang in the language, accompanying his pleasant voice with the strumming of his guitar. She loved it when he randomly hugged her, even though she was forced to push him away, and she loved watching him play football (_real_ football, or as the American's called it, "soccer.")

Maybe most of all, she loved the way he smiled when he looked at her, and the sparkle in his green—oh so perfectly, deeply _green_—eyes that told her his smile right then was just for her. She was loath to admit, even in her thoughts, that such a smile always made her feel warm and fuzzy inside and effectively turned her thoughts to mush, all in a horribly clichéd fashion.

No one is perfect, however, and despite all she loved about him, there were certain _things_ about Antonio that just made her want to punch him in the face. Like, for example, the fact that he was _so_ much stronger than her and freely used this fact to his advantage when he needed to restrain her for whatever reason.

It was proving quite useful to him right now, it seemed; he was just standing there spacing off like the oblivious idiot he tended to be, while she struggled without success in his arms. It was bad enough that he was currently keeping her from cutting Gilbert into tiny, very un-tasty albino pieces while at the same time holding her so flush against his chest that she swore he could feel the way her heart was desperately trying to escape from her chest, but it appeared that he had the _audacity_ to completely ignore her while he did such.

Was it really too much to ask for him to pay even a little bit of attention to the way that she was struggling in his grip? She felt like a fish trapped in a net (albeit a very warm and unfortunately quite comfortable net.)

That thought made her huff lightly, and she quickly busied herself with happily slamming her heals against Antonio's toes. It had no effect on the Spaniard, but directly in front of her, Gilbert was laughing at her failed attempt at freedom.

She felt anger building up in her stomach as the scowl already present on her face deepened.

"Shut the fuck up, damn it! Why don't you drag your fucking albino ass over here so I can kick it back to your stupid potato-worshipping country?"

He laughed again, that creepy _kesesese_ sound he always seemed to make. It only served to piss her off even more.

"In your un-awesome dreams," he taunted in reply. He looked straight at her then, a grin the size of Russia stretching from cheek to cheek. "Kesese. You're really dragging this out, aren't you? Was my awesomeness too much for you?"

She felt a surge of anger flash through her. _As if the bastard doesn't know what he did_.

"Che cazzo? You brought this on yourself, bastardo! It had nothing to do with your so called "awesomeness;" you messed with my sister, so you're going to pay!"

Gilbert looked insulted when his "awesomeness" was questioned and opened his mouth to defend it. Lovina missed whatever he said in retaliation, though, her attention drawn to a point somewhere over his shoulder. At some point a crowd had formed around the three of them (Antonio, Gilbert, and herself), probably all attracted by the lure of an argument potentially on the verge of becoming a full-blown, physical fight.

As her gaze flitted around she thought she saw a few faces not lit up with a hunger to see battle, but instead creased with worry and a bit of disappointment—people like her sister, the potato bastard, and Antonio's other friend the perverted wine-bastard—but they were soon lost in a sea of unrecognizable others.

She didn't let her thoughts dwell on those few faces long. Instead, no longer singularly focused on Gilbert, she finally heard the dull thrum radiating from the students surrounding her. "Fight! Fight! Fight!" It reminded her of the beating of a drum, steady and strong as rose in a crescendo.

_Trust me, I'd love to give you all a show_, she thought almost bitterly as the mantra of the crowd continued to throb in her ears. _But I have yet to deal with the annoyingly stubborn Spaniard currently restricting my ability to move. _

By now, her struggle was half-assed at best. She still wiggled and kicked, but not with as much intensity as before. It was all part of the plan, of course; get the idiot to think she'd calmed down and loosen his grip so that with a sudden burst of effort she would escape with ease.

Lovina knew that the spacey look on Antonio's face meant that he had managed to lose himself in his thoughts once again. She believed this could be used to her advantage; if he was unaware of his surroundings it would be even easier to break free.

Whatever train of thought he was riding at the moment seemed to have other ideas.

As she watched him, his face suddenly contorted into what could almost be called a calculating, or even mildly plotting, look (if this wasn't _Antonio_ we were talking about) and his grip on her unconsciously tightened.

She swore loudly at the uncomfortable position she was now in. "God damn it," she hissed, pushing fruitlessly against Antonio's arms, trying to loosen his now vice-like grip. "Are you trying to fucking crush me, stronzo?"

He ignored her, which only served to fuel her ire. She slapped at his arms and kicked his legs as hard as she could, but it did nothing. She realised with a jolt that he was moving, walking slowly backwards and dragging her with him.

A stream of obscenity fell from her lips but it was cut off abruptly as her attention was drawn to a commotion in the crowd. Some of the students in the back of the group were being jostled around, as if someone outside of the circle was trying to push their way in to the center.

That theory was confirmed as a familiar British-accented voice drifted into Lovina's ears.

"Would you _please_ move aside? Student council members coming through!"

A second voice answered the first, though doing so in quieter tones so that Lovina couldn't actually catch what was said. It was easy enough to hear the snickering in between the words, however.

"Oh _shove off_! You are such an insufferable arse. My—admittedly shorter—stature has absolutely nothing to do with the inability of these people to MOVE OUT OF THE BLOODY WAY!"

The raise in volume had no effect on the members of the crowd except to cause a slight shuffling of those standing nearest to the owner of the angry words. A loud burst of laughter bubbled up from the same area, followed by an obnoxious voice.

"Hahaha! That was such a fail! Though, I bet if your voice was as big as your eyebrows you'd have no trouble clearing a room, huh? Don't worry, though, I'll help you out! It would be completely un-heroic if I didn't, right? YO! CLEAR OUT YOU GUYS! THE HERO NEEDS TO GET THROUGH TO SAVE THE DAY!"

This prompted a better response from the crowd and it slowly started to disperse, opening a path right through to the middle. Lovina felt her annoyance level increase tenfold as the owners of both voices stepped into view.

On the left, Anne Kirkland stood with her arms crossed, her abnormally large eyebrows furrowed to show her irritation. World Academy's student council president was not amused.

Beside her was the student council vice president, self-proclaimed "Hero," Alfred F. Jones. Strangely, he had a wide grin on his face as he stood in a ridiculously embellished pose. She couldn't help but wonder if he practiced the pose in the mirror; placing his legs exactly shoulder width apart, one hand on his hips, the other hand pointed accusingly straight at…her?

An arbitrary thought entered her mind then. _What was Antonio doing through all this? _She made to turn her head and check to see if, as she suspected, he was still wandering around his thoughts, completely oblivious to the world around him, but was stopped by Alfred opening his mouth to proclaim loudly, "You there: Villain! Drop your weapon and come over here quietly so that I, the Hero, can bring you and your evil deeds to justice!"

Lovina felt Antonio stiffen, his hold on her tightening, if that was possible. His body language told her that he had absolutely no intention of "letting her go over there quietly." She fought the urge to smile at such a thought, automatically forcing her near-traitorous facial muscles into the scowl that was so natural for her.

Then, with a sudden burst of determination, she pulled away from Antonio. He wasn't expecting the movement, but was still able to grab hold of her shoulders.

"Lovi?" he said questioningly, and it made her momentarily freeze to hear a note of sadness in his usually cheerful voice.

She made herself shrug off his hands, for appearances sake, and walked over to stand in front of Alfred, hands defiantly on his hips. She refused to look back, afraid to see what kind of expression had formed on Antonio's face. Whatever it was, she knew it wouldn't be the smile she so loved.

Alfred gave her a quizzical look, although the smile never left his face. He obviously hadn't expected her to make things this easy for him. She sneered slightly and held out the knife that had been fisted in her hand, which he snatched up immediately.

"I'll come with you, but don't expect for a minute that I'll go quietly." She shot a quick glance back at Antonio, but avoided looking at his eyes. "Can we just go now? If I'm going to be punished for a crime I didn't even get a chance to commit, we might as well get it over with."

Alfred nodded, still looking taken aback by the way in which she was just handed herself over. He gestured toward the door out of the lunch room.

"After you; and make sure you don't try anything funny! The Hero will be right behind you."

She scowled and moved past him, walking briskly toward the exit with both Anne and Alfred behind her. They were followed by the sound of running feet.

"Lovi, wait! You don't have to go with them! You didn't do anything, querida!"

Her scowl unconsciously twisted into a sad frown that she hid by staring at the ground before her feet. _How could he still call her by such a name even after she'd just blown him off like that?_

"No thanks to _you_, bastard," was her only response. It was true, although she could guess that his intentions had only been to protect his friend and perhaps her, as well. She tried to ignore the stab of guilt in her stomach and allowed herself to be directed through the door out of the lunch room.

Behind her, the pounding sound of Antonio's feet stopped.

* * *

><p><strong>End AN:<strong> DUN DUN DUN! Yeah, I had fun with that ending. It was extremely overdramatic in my head, but I tried to tone it down a little. I don't know how well I succeeded . But yay! The third of the three most important people in this story has entered! And he's going to be playing quite a big part soon...We'll see lots more of him next chapter :D

Well anyways, I hope everyone liked this chapter! No promises for when chapter two will be coming out, but with any luck, you won't have to wait nearly two months again. I have this whole story planned out! The only issue is well...writing it :D

Well, I think that's all I've got to say! As before, reviews are extremely appreciated~ ByeBye for now~

**Translations:** More translations, yay :D I'm not going to bother reposting translations from past chapters so if there's anything from this chapter I didn't translate, it should be back at the bottom of the prologue~ Or, I just missed it completely. If I _do_ miss any (which I probably will) and you can't figure out what it is, I got it from GoogleTranslate so head there for assistance :D

_Por favor_ - Spanish, please

_Mi amor_ - Spanish, my love

_Lo siento_ - Spanish, sorry

_Che cazzo_ - Italian, what the fuck

_Bastardo_ - Italian, bastard

_Figlio di puttana _- Italian, son of a bitch

_Stronzo_ - Italian, asshole


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